Texas markets trail the field for NCAA Tournament ratings

To borrow a line from the play “Greater Tuna,” the NCAA Tournament on CBS and Turner Sports is drawing gangbuster Nielsen ratings … Texas not included.

Thursday’s coverage on CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV averaged a 5.8 rating in the 56 major markets, up from 5.6 in 2012. That’s the best opening-day rating in 22 years, the networks said.

But in Texas, which is a vast wasteland for Tournament team contributions this year, the numbers are appropriately grim. Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth averaged 2.6, which tied for 52nd among the major markets, San Antonio checked in at 2.5, which ranked 54th, and Houston was dead last with a 2.2 average rating.

Nationally, the morning window averaged 4.1, up from 3.9 last year and the second-highest rating for the time slot since 1991. The afternoon slot averaged 5.5, up from 5.2 last year for the highest rating ever in that time period.

The first prime time window averaged a record 7.4, up from 6.8 last year, and the late window averaged 6.4, down from 6.8 last year.

Maybe the Texas ratings will pick up Friday with four games in Austin. Then again, maybe not.